Best Buy says sales growth to slow after work-from-home boom

(Reuters) – Best Buy Co Inc warned on Tuesday sales growth may slow in the coming weeks due to challenges such as higher unemployment and potential supply issues, sending the shares of the U.S. consumer electronics retailer down 4%.

Chief Financial Officer Matt Bilunas said third-quarter sales would likely taper from levels of 20% growth, which was spurred by a surge in online demand for computers and other electronic accessories needed to work from home.

Best Buy’s comparable sales rose 5.8% in the second quarter ended Aug. 1, beating analysts’ average expectation of a 3.7% increase, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Overall revenue rose nearly 4% to $9.91 billion as U.S. online sales more than tripled and beat market expectation of $9.71 billion.

The company’s net earnings rose to $432 million, or $1.65 per share, from $238 million, or 89 cents per share, a year earlier.

(Reporting by Uday Sampath in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)